Thursday, 10 July 2008

Blink

This book is just plain cool and it's actually hard to say precisely
why. Humans think and make decisions very quickly without knowing we
do this, or even understanding how we can do it.

There are two immediate rammifications:

If you know a field well, and I mean very well. If you've studied
it, trained in it, worked and lived in it, then your snap thought
process, your 'Blink' is very valuable. You should trust it.

If this isn't your field of expertise though, your brain will find
something to react to, some stereotype you aren't even aware of and
react to that. Frequently, that stereotype will be "I don't like that
because it's different." In these cases your 'Blink' will lead you
wildly astray. Don't trust it - it's hard, but dig deeper and take time.

A major flaw may have occurred to you: if you can't understand these
instant reactions, how do you know which one you're having? Well, if
you're honest with yourself, of course you know. Either you have
studied something, or you haven't.

But that doesn't work well for the softer skills like reading
people. Every thinks they're good at reading people.

So what can you do? Well to start, read this. It's a truely
fascinating study of people and how we think. And, being aware of the
decisions you make without thinking is actually a pretty powerful
antidote to those times it leads you astray.

You've just met someone. He seems like a pretty good guy and you like
him. Your powers of rationalisation will tell you that you like him
because he seems confident but easy-going. You also liked his mildly
self-deprecating introduction. And if this is social, great! Just go
with it! But, if this is an interview and you're on either side of the
table, stop and ask yourself. Is that all true, or do I just like him
because he's tall?

Seriously. Read the book. Gladwell also wrote The Tipping Point
which I will be definitely be reading.